Of Wolf and Man
by nita6546
Summary: This is a songfic about all the ferals letting their animals out. The song if Of Wolf and Man by Metallica. By the way, try listening to all my Metallica songfics to the S&M versions.


**This songfic is based on the song Of Wolf and Man by Metallica. Hope you enjoy it and please review. **

**Of Wolf And Man lyrics **

_Off through the new day's mist I run_  
_Out from the new day's mist I have come_  
_I hunt_  
_Therefore I am_  
_Harvest the land_  
_Taking of the fallen lamb _

Hunting is what Victor lives for. He sees himself as 'harvesting' the land, culling off the weak, leaving only the strong. He uses what he kills, not wasting anything. He accepts the animal within him, integrating it into his everyday life almost completely. But sometimes he needs to let it out. Sometimes it doesn't want to kill, but just to run, to enjoy running through the woods. The smell of the trees, plants, dirt, and wildness right after the rain. He loves the feel of dirt, pine needles, and moss under his hands and feet. He flexes his hands, digging the claws into the dirt, enjoying the feel of the cool dirt playing between his fingers. Sure, he's an monster most of the time, but sometimes he just wants to be.

_Off through the new day's mist I run_  
_Out from the new day's mist I have come_  
_We shift_  
_Pulsing with the earth_  
_Company we keep_  
_Roaming the land while you sleep _

She kept the animal side buried deep inside herself. Just because she let people see the emotionless facade instead of her emotions didn't mean she didn't need to let them out. She sometimes envied Logan in his ability to trust others with his emotional outbursts.

A curtain fluttering in the breeze was the only sign of her passing. A dark figure flitted across the open yard, heading for the tree line. She slowly let out the leash as she got closer and closer until she reached the point of no return and the beast took over. Her senses became sharper, she could smell more, see more, hear more, she could feel the taste of scents rushing over her tongue. Her animal roared in exhalation as it ran on all fours through the trees. She howled her pleasure. An animal responded, it sounded male, and familiar. She changed her course to find it. She sniffed, she knew that smell. Bursting upon a clearing she found a feral man crouching by a stream, drinking. Her dormant human side recognized him as Logan. Her sniffed, then turned and faced her. She approached him and nuzzled under his chin, recognizing him as her alpha. His scent let her know he approved.

Suddenly he stiffened and sniffed, then turned to follow the scent. His senses where sharper than hers thanks to his century and a half of experience. However, it was soon clear he was after a cougar that was living in the forest surrounding the school. Even his feral side instinctively protected his pack and his territory. X-23 fell into step beside him as they stalked the dangerous predator. They ended up in a branch a few feet above the cougar, waiting for the perfect moment to attack. Logan leaped to the branch where the cougar was sitting and fell with the cat to the ground. When he was sure it was dead he stood up, the gashes from the cat's claws and teeth healing. Laura brushed some blood off his arm to the ground and licked the wounds he couldn't reach. Taking care of her leader.

When he was clean they took off running through the woods, just enjoying the feel of the wind in their hair. They chased each other, played and just had fun bonding as alpha and beta, leader and follower, father and daughter.

_Shape shift, nose to the wind_  
_Shape shift, feeling I've been_  
_Move swift, all senses clean_  
_Earth's gift, back to the meaning_  
_Back to the meaning of life _

Logan had just woken from another round of nightmares. He ran a hand though his jet-black hair. That is his only outward sign of distress, only ones who knew what to look for noticed it. He decided to go for a midnight run in the woods and let the animal out to relive some tension. He shucked his t-shirt and perfectly landed the three-story jump to the ground and took off running. He felt his eyes turn almost black from their usual blue and knew the animal was in control.

He paused at a stream for a drink before continuing his run. He heard an animal howl and responded. Soon the animal was moving toward him through he underbrush, it was Laura. Looks like he wasn't the only one who needed a release. If he was being honest, he admired her ability to control her animal side so well. He knew what it was like. Because she was his clone, he knew she had the same animal side as him.

_Bright is the moon, high in starlight_  
_Chill in the air cold as steel tonight_  
_We shift_  
_Call of the wild_  
_Fear in your eyes_  
_It's later than you realized _

He looked up at the moon, high above him. The air was cold like the steel on his claws. They were never warm anymore. He constantly felt the cold metal resting under his skin and muscle. He wanted to get away for awhile. It had been a long time since he let his other side out, couldn't afford it in battle. He had more control than his 'father', probably because he had a semi-stable childhood, at least until he ruined it. His name, Daken, means mongrel, its true, but at least better than being a bastard like dear, old dad.  
He ended up somewhere in Canada, in front of a huge mansion. He didn't know what drew him here, maybe the stories Romulus told him about his dad and uncle Victor when they were kids. He sniffed, he could faintly detect scents that were faintly like his, but more like his father's. Guess no one wanted this place, didn't even bother cleaning up the mess.  
He spent months cleaning the old place. He buried the bodies of his grandparents and step grandpa on a hill by a grave that read John Howlett, Jr.

_Shape shift, nose to the wind_  
_Shape shift, feeling I've been_  
_Move swift, all senses clean_  
_Earth's gift, back to the meaning_  
_Back to the meaning of life _

He was tired of being the monster his human side was. Most people thought what they was was the animal. In truth, it was the human part. Humans were monsters, not animals. And now he wanted to be the animal. He disappeared into the wilderness and was whole. Kyle Gibney moved through the trees and enjoyed being normal, he must have gotten it from his dad. Sabretooth was know to disappear into the woods from time to time, too.

_I feel a change_  
_Back to a better day_  
_Shape shift, hair stands on the back of my neck_  
_Shape shift, in wildness is the preservation of the world_  
_So seek the wolf in thyself _

He was old, even he didn't remember how old anymore. But he did remember when Lupines evolved into humans. After all, he was the first. He controlled every government on Earth, had unlimited power and resources. The one thing he didn't have was complete control of the animal part of his brain. Daken wondered were he went when he disappeared for months or years at a time, he was letting the beast out, Letting it roam. It used to be easier, before humans came about. Now, he took it where he could get it.

_Shape shift, nose to the wind_  
_Shape shift, feeling I have been_  
_Move swift, all senses clean_  
_Earth's gift, back to the meaning_  
_Back to the meaning of wolf and man _

Sure, Hanks smart, doesn't have as strong of senses as Logan or Laura, but he still felt the animal part of his brain and even though he had pretty good control of it, it felt nice to let it play. To swing through the trees to his heart's content and enjoy being in nature.

**Thanks for reading. Please review whether you liked it or not, flames are welcome. If you review you will get a special surprise...**  
**To the reviewers of my other fics, you get … a bloodhound puppy. Check your mail for your prize! (Disclaimer: Puppies may be fictional. Do not expect to receive animals in the mail.)  
By the way, try listening to my other songfics to the s&m versions of the songs. Hint: youtube.  
Please vote in my poll.**


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